Many modern applications require location data for the computing device on which the applications are running for providing location-based services. Navigation, weather, social-media, entertainment, and gaming applications are common examples.
Traditional devices generally provide highly accurate location data to applications requesting user-device location. In response to a request for location from a third-party application server, for example, most devices provide definite geographic coordinates, such as by way of a satellite navigation system.
Relatively high accuracy location data is provided even when less-accurate locating techniques are used, such as triangulation or multilateration using local transmitters or transceivers such as cellular-communication towers. Another locating technique is beacon-based locating, using coordinates of a nearby wireless hotspot communicating with the user device.
In addition to knowing the exact location of the user device at the time, third parties receiving location data can track the device over time to determine particular places that the user frequents. The data can likewise be used undesirably to identify user routes or routines. While most third parties, such as application service providers, do not track users for these purposes, some do, and the potential is always present using traditional systems.